(2020-10-02). Learn About Where the Gwinnett County Sheriff Candidates Land on Immigration. aclu.org 
Thousands of immigrant families who call Gwinnett County home have been split apart by the sheriff office's participation in a program with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. This program, know as 287(g), costs taxpayers millions of dollars every year, erodes community trust, promotes racial profiling, and redirects local resources to federal immigration enforcement. The election for Gwinnett County Sheriff on Nov. 3 will help determine the county's future collaboration with ICE. To make an informed decision, make sure you know the candidates' positions on key immigration issues. | ACLU of Georgia asked…
(2020-10-02). Federal executions paused, racism continues. workers.org 
Houston In the previous 56 years, the U.S. government had executed just three prisoners. But in 2020, seven federal executions have already taken place since July. The most recent was Christopher Vialva, put to death Sept. 24 at the federal prison in Terra Haute, Ind. He was the first Black . . . |
(2020-10-02). Turkey arrests: New wave of detentions target pro-Kurdish HDP. middleeasteye.net 
Turkey arrests: New wave of detentions target pro-Kurdish HDP | Of 53 mayoralties won in March 2019 local elections, the party now only controls four as a result of repeated arrests | Fri, 10/02/2020 – 12: 23 | Demonstrators in Istanbul shout slogans during a protest against the arrest of scores of members of the pro-Kurdish Peoples Democratic Party (AFP) | Authorities in Turkey have detai…
(2020-10-02). Amnesty presses Egypt to release detainees after rare protests. middleeasteye.net 
Amnesty presses Egypt to release detainees after rare protests | Rights group reports at least 496 people have been detained by Cairo since crackdown on protests began last month | Fri, 10/02/2020 – 18: 37 | Police had fired tear gas and in some instances live ammunition at demonstrators (AFP/File photo) | Amnesty International has called on Egyptian authorities to release hundreds of people who were arrested…
(2020-10-02). Arabic press review: Plans for Israel-UAE canal enrage Egypt. middleeasteye.net 
Arabic press review: Plans for Israel-UAE canal enrage Egypt | Meanwhile, Jordan expels former Palestinian prisoner Nizar al-Tamimi, and three ministers of Arab origin join new Belgian government | Fri, 10/02/2020 – 15: 14 | Egypt is reportedly worried that a new canal between Israel and the UAE might threaten its crucial income from the Suez Canal (AFP/file photo, November 2019) | Canal tri…
(2020-10-02). The Law That Sent a Man to Prison for Life for Stealing a Pair of Hedge Clippers — and What Prosecutors Can do About It. aclu.org Last month, the Louisiana Supreme Court
(2020-10-02). The Supreme Court Rulings You're Not Hearing About. aclu.org This past June, many breathed a sigh of relief when the U.S. Supreme Court rose above partisanship in controversial cases involving abortion, LGBTQ+ rights, the rights of DREAMERS, and the president's tax returns. In those cases, conservative justices relied on legal reasoning, rather than party loyalty, to guide their decisions., , But lurking in the shadows is a concerning new trend in the Supreme Court to grant an unprecedented number of emergency orders with little transparency and no opportunity for recourse. These cases comprise the court's aptly named "shadow docket." And under the Trump administration,…
(2020-10-02). Civil Rights Groups Are Finally Waking Up to the ADL's Right Wing Agenda. mintpressnews.com From its National Counter Terrorism Seminars, its mapping of pro-Palestinians activists, and its silence over Israeli human rights violations, the ADL's thin veneer of civil rights advocacy is quickly wearing.
(2020-10-02). Voting by Mail is Easier and Safer than You Think. Here's how. aclu.org Millions of people are planning to vote by mail in this election, and for most, it will be the first time. COVID-19 has made voting by mail more popular than ever because it's the safest way for many to cast a ballot. But some voters still have questions about the safety and security of this method, and whether their mail-in ballot will be counted. Contradictory messages from President Trump add to the confusion — even though the president, and
(2020-10-02). Inside Irwin County: Letters from a notorious ICE detention center. splcenter.org …
(2020-10-02). Could Americans possibly reelect a president who acts in this sordid, reprehensible manner? nationofchange.org When Trump loses the election, and he will, he will immediately face various investigations, some of which will lead to criminal charges and, best of all, jail time. And he knows it.
(2020-10-02). Young Progressives Running for Office Pledge to "Stop Police Killings" truthout.org After months of sustained resistance in the wake of several high-profile police killings of Black and Brown people, a new generation of progressive candidates are running for state and local office across the country on pledges to confront systemic racism in the criminal legal system. While most such pledges remain cautious compared to the liberatory calls for police abolition that have filled the streets, there's no doubt that the Black Lives Matter movement has profoundly impacted candidates' platf…
(2020-10-02). Israel detains senior Hamas leader in Ramallah. yenisafak.com Israel on Friday detained a senior leader of the Palestinian group Hamas in the central West Bank, according to local Palestinian media.Palestinian news website Donia al-Watan reported that Israeli forces detained Hasan Yousef, 64, in his home in the town of Beitunia to the west of Ramallah city.Israeli authorities released Yousef in July after he was jailed for 15 months.Yousef spent a total of 21 years in Israeli jails — mostly without trial under Tel Aviv's policy of administrative detention.He was actively involved in a recent rapprochement between the two Palestinian rival parties, Hamas and Fatah.* Ahmed A…
(2020-10-01). Extradition trial concludes, Assange to remain in prison until verdict in January. peoplesdispatch.org The trial concluded after 18 days of extensive submissions from experts and witnesses over a range of aspects concerning the persecution of Wikileaks in the US…
(2020-10-01). Lawyers, Politicians and Diplomats for Assange. globalresearch.ca Since brutally dragged from Ecuador's London embassy in April last year, confined to maximum security imprisonment, and subjected to guilt by accusation extradition hearings, establishment media have been largely silent about his state-sponsored crucifixion for the "crime" of truth-telling journalism….
(2020-10-01). Reportback: Julian Assange Hearing On Tuesday September 29. popularresistance.org Tuesday has been another day on which the testimony focused on the extreme inhumane conditions in which Julian Assange would be kept imprisoned in the USA if extradited. The prosecution's continued tactic of extraordinary aggression towards witnesses who are patently well informed played less well, and there were distinct signs that Judge Baraitser was becoming irritated by this approach. The totality of defence witnesses and the sheer extent of mutual corroboration they provided could not simply be dismissed by the prosecution attempting to characterise all of them as uninformed on a particular detail, still les…
(2020-10-01). National Security Journalism Is On Trial. popularresistance.org Few American media organizations seem to have noticed, but the U.S. Justice Department has spent the past few weeks trying to persuade the Central Criminal Court of England and Wales to extradite Julian Assange to the United States to face charges under the 1917 Espionage Act. The hearing is scheduled to wind down at the end of this week. At this point Assange has alienated pretty much everyone, including many erstwhile supporters, and few people on this side of the Atlantic seem troubled by his indictment or by the possibility that he will be extradited, tried, convicted, and imprisoned.
(2020-10-01). Judge To Rule on January Whether Assange Should Be Extradited. telesurenglish.net British judge Vanessa Baraitser will rule on January 4, 2021, whether she authorizes the extradition of Julian Assange to the United States, where the Australian journalist is accused of 18 crimes of espionage that could sentence him up to 175 years in prison. | RELATED: | The magistrate set the date for her ruling at the end of a four-week trial in the London Old Bailey court, in which numerous witnesses for the Wik…
(2020-10-01). Coronavirus being used to intimidate Palestinians inside Israeli prisons, says group. middleeasteye.net 
Coronavirus being used to intimidate Palestinians inside Israeli prisons, says group | Palestinian prisoner organisation says authorities deliberately using fear of exposure to Covid-19 during interrogations | Thu, 10/01/2020 – 12: 02 | A Palestinian man walks past a mural depicting the coronavirus and a prison cell in Gaza City (AFP) | Shorouq Dawayyat is serving a 16-year prison sentence in an Is…
(2020-10-01). Stranded migrants need safe and dignified return, says independent UN rights panel. news.un.org Governments should immediately address the inhumane conditions in detention faced by migrant workers who are also being blamed for spreading the coronavirus, a UN panel of independent rights experts said on Thursday.
(2020-10-01). The Next Steps in Eviction Defense. counterpunch.org 
A few thoughts on intentions, tactics, and building eviction defense networks Here in Portland, there are signs that the movement for Black lives and the movement for actually affordable housing are increasingly intersecting in all kinds of ways. Among the networks engaged in popular education and resistance organizing efforts around housing issues, you'll find groups
(2020-10-01). France temporarily detains relatives of citizens trapped in Syria camps. middleeasteye.net 
France temporarily detains relatives of citizens trapped in Syria camps | At least six people were arrested by anti-terrorism unit for sending funds to family members | Thu, 10/01/2020 – 17: 18 | A woman covers her face with a veil as she holds a manifest of names while sitting by children outside a tent at al-Roj camp, 30 September 2020 (AFP) | French authorities arrested at least six French citizen…
(2020-10-01). US lawsuit challenges Trump's sanctions against ICC. middleeasteye.net 
US lawsuit challenges Trump's sanctions against ICC | Rights group and law professors are suing administration to block US measures against International Criminal Court | Thu, 10/01/2020 – 21: 15 | President Donald Trump during visit to US troops in Afghanistan last November (AFP/File Photo) | A human rights group, along with four law professors, has filed a lawsuit against the US President Donald Trump's admi…
(2020-10-01). Iranian press review: Tensions flare in Iraq and Iran over criticism of Sistani. middleeasteye.net 
Iranian press review: Tensions flare in Iraq and Iran over criticism of Sistani | Meanwhile, oil exports sharply increase despite US sanctions and three authors are jailed for 'propaganda against the state' | Thu, 10/01/2020 – 12: 58 | Mask-clad members of the Hashd al-Shaabi (Popular Mobilisation) paramilitary force stand near portraits of Sistani, left, and Soleimani, right (AFP) |
(2020-10-01). And the medal goes to… Sexism! Oppression-olympics poster valorizing Hillary Clinton goes viral, boggling Internet's mind. rt.com 
The online community has ridiculed a 2014 political poster that uses the n-word and b-word repeatedly and seeks to prove racism ended with Barack Obama's presidency, while sexism has remained unchallenged throughout US history. | The art project, titled 'Words Matter' and designed by Yue Chen, went viral on Wednesday, after it grabbed users' attention for having the n-word typed over it some fourteen times.
(2020-10-01). Russia's FSB detains Siberian nuclear scientist suspected of passing classified technologies & state secrets to China. rt.com 
A Russian physicist is being accused of divulging state secrets, after conducting research at a physics lab in China. He couldn't return to his work there due to Covid rules and had recently been working at Tomsk State University. | The Urals-based news site Znak identified the suspect as 64-year-old nuclear physicist Alexander Lukanin. Znak reported that Lukanin was arrested for disclosing classified information belonging to the Russian government, but there has been no official confirmation of this. The outlet also reported that the scientist is currently in a pre-trial detention centre, and that the FSB has…
(2020-10-01). Safe at Home: Fighting Against Sexual Harassment in Housing. aclu.org Rita, a single mother, was desperate to find an affordable home in Palm Beach County, Florida, after suffering a foreclosure a few years earlier. After searching for some time, she finally found an apartment within her price range but there was one huge problem: Soon after she moved in, the property manager began to sexually harass her., , He took advantage of Rita's financial circumstances — and his position of power over her — to extort sexual acts from her in exchange for reduced rent. The harassment escalated, as he tracked her whereabouts, monitored her guests, and installed surveillance came…
(2020-10-01). At the Polls, Episode 3: The Role of the Courts in Election 2020. aclu.org Election Day is fast approaching, and while we're doing everything we can to prepare, some questions remain unanswered. , , Dale Ho, director of the ACLU Voting Rights Project, and University of Michigan law professor Leah Litman join the Election years are always busy for the ACLU…
(2020-10-01). Will the 2020 Election Be Decided in the Streets? scheerpost.com Anthony Crider / CC BY 2.0] By John Feffer / TomDispatch The white mobs didn't care whom they killed as long as the victims were Black. They murdered people in public with guns and rocks. They set fire to houses and slaughtered families trying to escape the flames. In East St. Louis in July 1917, white vigilantes lynched Blacks with impunity. It was the prelude to what civil rights activist James… |
(2020-10-01). US Court Refuses to Dismiss Trump Admin Lawsuit Seeking Bolton's Book Proceeds. sputniknews.com A US federal judge has declined an attempt by former national security adviser John Bolton to dismiss a lawsuit by the Trump administration that would appropriate the proceeds of his recently published tell-all book.
(2020-10-01). Progressive Groups Are Mobilizing to De-Escalate Far Right Violence at the Polls. truthout.org In preparation for potential voter intimidation this year, the Women's March, Working Families Party, Movement for Black Lives Electoral Justice Project, United We Dream and other organizations are mobilizing "election defenders" to de-escalate tense situations as well as provide voters with personal protective equipment and water on Election Day. | "So far, more than 6,000 people across the country have signed up to be election defenders," Working Families Party National Director Maurice…
(2020-10-01). GOP-Led Inquest Decried as Effort to Suppress Florida Voters With Felony Records. truthout.org Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody's call for state and federal investigations into billionaire Michael Bloomberg's effort to raise millions to pay off court fees to help Florida felons restore their voting rights was a "gross abuse" of power, "voter suppression," "a fearmongering tactic used before" and based on a "fundamental misconception" of anti-corruption laws, according to experienced campaign lawyers and former federal election regulators. | "It's not just that an investigative…
(2020-10-01). DHS Officials Were Told to Portray Kyle Rittenhouse in a Positive Light. truthout.org Officials within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) were directed to respond in a positive and defensive manner to inquiries regarding Kyle Rittenhouse, the 17-year-old who shot and killed two Black Lives Matter protesters in Kenosha, Wisconsin, in late August, according to an internal document. | Rittenhouse had traveled from Illinois to demonstrations in Kenosha, which began in response to the police-perpetrated shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black man who was shot by law enforcement seven ti…
(2020-10-01). Pendley Lawsuit Proceeds Toward Removing "De Facto" Park Service Director. counterpunch.org Washington, DC Secretary of the Interior David Bernhardt's series of efforts to evade Senate confirmation for the National Park Service's (NPS) top official Margaret Everson requires her prompt removal, according to an expedited motion filed in a DC District Court lawsuit yesterday by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) and Western Watersheds Project (WWP). Bernhardt
(2020-09-30). Ecuador: Indigenous Peoples Harassed When Filing Complaint. telesurenglish.net The Union of Natives of the Ecuadorian Amazon (FCUNAE) rejected on Tuesday the temporary detention of some of its leaders who traveled to Quito city to file a complaint with the Judicial Council for the damage caused by an oil spill that occurred in April. | RELATED: | The FCUNAE president Carlos Jipa explained that the police tried to prevent the indigenous leaders from arriving in Quito by intercepting the bus…
(2020-09-30). Human Rights Groups Applaud London Mayor for Boycotting Saudi Summit. commondreams.org "No mayors in good conscience should agree to attend the U20 Summit until Loujain and the other imprisoned Saudi human rights defenders are freed and the bombing and blockading of Yemen ceases." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/london-mayor-khan-u20-saudi.jpg …
(2020-09-30). Your Man in the Public Gallery: Assange Hearing Day 20. globalresearch.ca Tuesday has been another day on which the testimony focused on the extreme inhumane conditions in which Julian Assange would be kept imprisoned in the USA if extradited. The prosecution's continued tactic of extraordinary aggression towards witnesses who are patently …
(2020-09-30). Witnesses in Assange trial say complete isolation very likely in US. peoplesdispatch.org As the final week of the extradition trial of Julian Assange continues, expert witnesses presented by the witness have focused on the treatment Assange is likely to get once extradited. Maureen Baird, who worked in the US Bureau of Prisons (BOP) for two decades, and Lindsay Lewis, a lawyer who represented Abu Hamza, told the court on September 29, that Assange is very likely to be put under effective solitary confinement, once he is extradited. | Baird's and Lewis' testimonies challenge the claims made by the prosecution witness, US attorney Gordon Kromberg. In a submission made to the court yesterday, Kromberg a…
(2020-09-30). Life in Supermax for the Crime of 'Merely Doing Journalism'? UK Court Told Assange Likely to Be Sent to Notorious US Prison. commondreams.org A former warden at ADX Florence has described doing time in the Colorado prison as "a fate worse than death." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/getty-assange_protestors_0.jpg …
(2020-09-30). Headlines for September 30, 2020. democracynow.org Trump Refuses to Condemn White Supremacists or Rule Out Post-Election Violence, New York City Coronavirus Infections Surge for First Time in Months, Indian Health Officials Claim 60 Million Coronavirus Infections Nationwide, House Democrats Unveil Pared-Down $2.2 Trillion Coronavirus Relief Bill, Texas Sheriff and Prosecutor Indicted for Evidence Tampering in Javier Ambler Police Killing, Kentucky AG Didn't Recommend Murder Charges for Breonna Taylor's Killers, Trump Plans Pre-Election ICE Raids in U.S. Sanctuary Cities, More Women Detail Forced Sterilizations, Unnecessary Surgeries at Georgia ICE Jail, World Hea…
(2020-09-30). "Vigilantism at the Polls": Trump Attacks Election Integrity, Ballots & Backs Illegal Poll Watching. democracynow.org 
"It's a rigged election," claimed President Trump when he and his Democratic challenger Joe Biden were asked about election integrity during last night's debate as the two men sparred over mail-in voting. Trump ended the debate by calling for poll watchers. We speak with Kristen Clarke, president and executive director of the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, who says Trump is promoting unlawful intimidation and voter suppression, and has vowed to go to court to block any attempt to discourage or block people from freely casting their ballots.
(2020-09-30). Brazil: Violence Against Indigenous People Increased in 2019. telesurenglish.net The Indigenous Missionary Council (CIMI) revealed that the violence against Indigenous people increased to over 150 percent last year compared to 2018, encouraged by President Jair Bolsonaro's policies. | RELATED: | The annual report highlights that in 2019 alone, there were 256 reports of invasions of Indigenous lands in Brazil, as well as several denounces of abuse of power, death threats, discrimination, assassination a…
(2020-09-30). Thousands raise up Black Lives outside presidential debate. workers.org 
Cleveland protest targets first presidential debate, Sept. 29. Cleveland While presidential candidates Joe Biden and Donald Trump were debating in what many have labeled a "shitshow," thousands of Greater Clevelanders came out for a "Protest for Black Lives and Climate Justice." A broad coalition spread the word about the action . . . |
(2020-09-30). CBP Wants to Destroy Records of Misconduct. We Can't Let Them. aclu.org Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the nation's largest federal law enforcement agency, operates with
(2020-09-30). Victory: After Three Years of Battling in Court, the Trump Administration Abandons its Policy of Banning Abortion for Unaccompanied Immigrant Minors. aclu.org As a direct result of the immense courage of our clients and three years of litigation, the Trump administration has officially abandoned its policy of preventing young immigrants in its custody from accessing abortion care. Yesterday, the administration adopted a new policy that prohibits Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) staff and staff employed by any ORR-funded shelter from blocking or interfering with unaccompanied pregnant minors' access to abortion. ORR's adoption of this new
(2020-09-30). Lawmakers urge Trump to 'personally' intervene in trial of US-Saudi national. middleeasteye.net 
Lawmakers urge Trump to 'personally' intervene in trial of US-Saudi national | Salah al-Haidar faces as long as 33 years in prison as he goes before court that has imprisoned rights activists, journalists, clerics and minority Shia Muslims | Wed, 09/30/2020 – 17: 43 | Lawmakers have also urged president to intervene in case of Salah al-Haidar's mother, prominent Saudi women's rights activist Aziza al-Yousef (A…
(2020-09-30). Online Charter schools are not a solution to education in a pandemic. mronline.org 
Nicholas Trombetta, the founder of Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School, which is unaffiliated with K12, received just 20 months in prison in 2018 for tax conspiracy after he moved $8 million from the school to a network of businesses he created and failed to pay $437,632 in taxes.
(2020-09-30). Justice for Breonna Taylor and Black lives in Seattle. workers.org 
Decriminalize Seattle. Seattle — Demonstrators marched here on Sept. 24 to protest the previous day's decision by a grand jury in Louisville, Ky., not to bring charges against the cops who murdered Breonna Taylor. Hundreds took to the streets for hours, until after midnight, and marched on the Capital Hill . . . |
(2020-09-30). Texas sheriff arrested for tampering with evidence in police custody death. nationofchange.org If convicted, the sheriff could face up to 10 years in prison.
(2020-09-30). Letter from LA: To Rehabilitate Prisoners, Rehabilitate Jails. scheerpost.com By Wellford "Buzz" Wilms / Original to Scheerpost When newly elected Sheriff Jim McDonnell appointed me to the Los Angeles Sheriff's Inmate Welfare Commission in 2015, I had no idea of what I was getting into. To be honest, I'd never heard of the commission, so I went to my computer to check it out. I was astonished to learn that it had $25 million to spend on inmates' welfare annually ($35… |